The Laws of Dynamics

Abstract

Newton's law linking force and acceleration is at the origin of modern physics. Applied to each plot of fluid, it is at the heart of weather and climate prediction models. The intuitive notion of force has been used since antiquity to understand static equilibria. It allows to design the vaults in architecture, to use a lever, to describe the fluid balance under the effect of Archimedes' thrust. It was the principle of inertia discovered by Galileo that paved the way for the laws of Newtonian dynamics, whose great success was in explaining the movement of planets and satellites, as well as the tides. This has required a great deal of mathematical expertise, which has its limits for more complex systems such as the atmosphere or the ocean. The resolution of the equations of dynamics has only been possible since the advent of computer calculation. However, the laws of conservation, quantity of movement, energy, kinetic moment, bring global constraints allowing a more direct understanding of certain phenomena.